The UN must recognize that China has emerged as a major power in the world. Thus, the UN must understand the role China will have in the world if it emerges as a superpower. Specifically, China’s approaches to security, communist ideologies, currency, weapons, and influences on the world economy should be major concerns to the UN. The most critical matter for China today is human rights and political instability. The government does not tolerate any form of opposition, and it considers such attempts as interference with internal affairs and dissidence. China views the world with suspicion. On the other hand, the world has divided opinions about China. Sanaa Arora notes that superpower traditionally reflects “military, economic, political and cultural strengths and dominance” (Arora 1).
The economic reforms of the 1970s in China resulted in a prosperous nation. China’s Gross Domestic Product has grown steadily. China has enhanced its trading abilities with the West and Africa. Moreover, the country has accumulated large foreign currency reserves in the world and has embarked on foreign investments. The economic performance of China has been superb.
China can maintain such high rates of growth because of a large population, which provides cheap labor and a ready market. It also has vast resources. China has strived to overtake the US as the world’s largest economy, but not just yet. Analysts put it so close (Arora 1).
China started to upgrade its military in the 1980s. Today, it has increased the pace of its military upgrade (International Institute for Strategic Studies 152-5). Although China faces no major threat in the region, China has continued to prepare its military in readiness for potential wars. Past experiences like Tiananmen Square Massacre affected China’s relationship with the West. The country also analyzed the impacts of the Gulf War and its position. Consequently, China had to formulate a new defense approach for engaging in current combats, which could involve technology.
From past wars, China has turned to build electronic warfare, unethical cyber theft practices, and the development of advanced weapons. It has also embarked on modernizing its air force and naval capabilities with rapid response approaches. Moreover, China has enhanced its military logistical supports.
The country’s upgrade of its military drew different reactions from the world. Others claim that modernization was inevitable because China had old equipment. On the other hand, other critics have raised concerns about China’s assertive approaches to territorial disputes and military modernization. The country has also turned to nuclear programs. Such missiles can even reach North America. Also, China wants to control space and cyberspace. These strategies show the country’s desire to dominate the world.
The UN must worry about China as a superpower. It has a growing economic strength alongside a large-scale upgrade of the military. Thus, the UN must understand how China will use its power if it becomes a superpower. So far, China has used its new power to assert itself aggressively in the territorial disputes with Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, and other neighbors. Such aggressive tendencies have created tension in the region and friction with US relations. These claims show that China may resort to the use of force to control the islands. Thus, the security of neighboring countries with China as a superpower must worry about the UN.
The development in China as a possible superpower will only raise security concerns in the world. China’s growing power has poised it as a security threat to the region. In the past, China had engaged all its neighbors in some forms of disputes. Thus, it feels insecure as the region seeks strategic responses from the West. These diplomatic tensions can severely hurt China as a superpower. The country has limited chances of strengthening its position as a world leader. Many Asian countries have favored the role of the US in the region.
On the other hand, China only has rogue states as real allies. These include Zimbabwe, Venezuela, and Cuba, among others. These are countries under political dictatorship and manipulation of powers to favor incumbents. These are political pariahs of the world. These relationships are quite artificial because they rely on China’s quest for natural resources in exchange for backing at the UN against sanctions.
While one may argue that geography does not favor China’s security situations as a potential superpower, its dictatorship regime has thwarted emerging democratic candidates, which has contributed to its human rights abuse. Democratic and influential states cannot ally with a dictator. Therefore, it is difficult for China to form any meaningful security alliance with democratic states. China has failed to find a real strategic alliance with its partners because the country does not share security interests and ideological values with others because of the secrecy of the regime. Thus, there is no trust between China and its partners. As a result, China has resorted to ‘transactional diplomacy.’ Minxin Pei refers to this as “romping around the world with a fat checkbook, supporting (usually poor, isolated, and decrepit) regimes like Angola and Sudan in return for favorable terms on natural resources or voting against Western-sponsored resolutions criticizing China’s human rights record” (Pei 1). Thus, the rising superpower will have to address its communist ideologies, territorial disputes, and policies before qualifying as a superpower.
The UN must also express its concern over political stability and human rights issues in China. The Communist party has asserted its control over a billion people forcefully. The major agenda of the party is to retain power. According to China, issues of creating a democratic system and tolerating dissidence are strategies to impede its domestic affairs. Thus, if China becomes a superpower, then the UN will face serious challenges on how to handle it.
The public opinion regarding the role of China as a superpower may be split. The UN must find a way of dealing with rising China. A lack of secrecy approach to China’s situation could lead to a transparent superpower, a secure democracy, and a diplomatic state. Therefore, the UN must not tolerate or concede to China’s demands. Instead, the UN requires firm policies, and it must not engage in China’s games of distrust and suspicion. Ideally, a superpower must be a stable democracy, which can enjoy global supports. However, the secrecy of China and its present problems do not guarantee any promising position if the country becomes a superpower.
As the UN prepares for a possibility of China becoming a superpower, it must not underestimate security challenges, which China will pose to the Asian region and the West. Consequently, the UN requires a feasible security mechanism to control China and its rogue allies.
The economic transformation, the dollar and Yuan peg, trade imbalance, modernization of the military, and ‘transactional diplomacy’ of China have targeted the current superpower, the US. China strives to counter the current power balance. The UN must recognize that China has displayed open dictatorship in approaches to matters related to territorial claims and human rights abuse. China may face challenges of providing food to its large population. However, if the current rates of economic growth and military spending continue, then China may rise as a superpower and use its position to spread security threats, communism and control global trades with its Yuan as the global currency. Moreover, China aims to dominate technologies and the global economy. This implies that the country intends to create a foundation, which is stronger than that of the US.
The UN must ensure that China resolves security issues in the region. First, China must resolve all territorial issues with all its neighbors. Second, it must support a collective security approach and abandon the secrecy of the regime. Third, China must eliminate mistrust and fears among its neighbors. Also, China must enhance its relationship with the US. The country must also seek for real allies based on sound policies and principles rather than the current artificial approach of transactional diplomacy. Finally, China must embrace democracy in its political system. This would ensure support from the US and other democratic states. However, the UN must also remember that China’s interests are to protect its security and interests around the world, which happens as the country ignore other regions and the West (Britt 1). Certainly, with these tendencies and challenges, China may not promote the world order (Dellios 1).
Works Cited
Arora, Sanaa. China – The Next Superpower? 2011. Web.
Britt, Robert Roy. Will China Become the No. 1 Superpower? 2008. Web.
Dellios, Rosita. “The Rise of China as a Global Power.” The Culture Mandala 6.2 (2005): 1. Print.
International Institute for Strategic Studies. The Military Balance 2004-2005. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004. Print.
Pei, Minxin. The Loneliest Superpower: How did China end up with only rogue states as its real friends? 2012. Web.